British political scientist and former London School of Economics professor Christopher Coker died in Malta earlier this month at the age of 70.

Coker was a world-renowned academic who wrote extensively about the war and lectured across the globe, including in Malta.

Media reports, including on Newsbook, have linked his death to a police report on September 5, when a 70-year-old man was found dead in a swimming pool in a private residence in Żurrieq.

Tributes have since poured in for the man, an LSE professor for over 40 years, with his past students remembering his humour and mentoring enthusiasm.

“His course during my undergrads (which then became published as his 'Humane Warfare' book) was an eye-opener to me and I have blamed him ever since for generating my interest in war and the darker sides of the human soul that relates to it. So he was an inspiration, but also became a mentor who always supported me throughout the 25 years I had known him,” Seb Kaempf wrote on Facebook upon learning of his demise.

David Ucko said the man was “something of a legend”.

“Following one of his many engrossing lectures on 'the strategic aspects of international relations', I visited his office wondering where I could learn more. His generosity with time and advice was remarkable - and I was by no means the only student knocking on his door.”

Coker became co-director of LSE IDEAS after retirement, with Emilia Knight, Centre Manager remembering him as “a superb colleague and leader at IDEAS, and the kindest person”.

Coker was a former serving member of the Council of the Royal United Services Institute, a former NATO Fellow and a lecturer at Defence Colleges in the UK, US, Rome, Singapore, and Tokyo

Coker also authored several publications including Rebooting Clausewitz (Hurst, 2015), Future War (Polity, 2016), The Rise of the Civilizational State (Polity, 2019) and Why War? (Oxford University Press, 2021).